Scope:Mutation Protocol

Mutation Protocol is a analog horror collaboration project and series created on December 18th, 2024 it is set in an alternate 1960s focusing on a pre-apocalyptic Earth. It blends science fiction, body horror, and speculative evolution utilizing mediums like videos, art, and narrative writing. Creators explore themes of human desperation, evolution, and survival against a backdrop of global scientific experimentation gone wrong. The project encourages world-building, collaboration, and expanding the lore to create a shared dark universe.

How to Collaborate

This scope is headed by: They are all Dead

To collaborate in Mutation Protocol, familiarize yourself with the project’s tone, lore, and speculative 1960s pre-apocalyptic setting. Contributions such as writing, artwork, or video creation must align with established themes and the horror atmosphere. Share your ideas directly through Discord, the primary platform for contacting the project lead and collaborating with others. Feedback, drafts, and publishing discussions will also occur there. Ensure your additions respect the existing world-building, and credit all contributors appropriately to maintain a cohesive and professional collaboration process.

Setting

The Mutation Protocol Series takes place in an alternate 1960s on a dying Earth where global powers launched the Mutation Protocol in a desperate attempt to accelerate human and animal evolution for survival. The world began diverging from ours during World War I which escalated into a longer, more devastating conflict. And by the time World War II occurred it was barely recognizable as a war due to the extent of global suffering and the conflict was halted and not ended meaning technically World War II never truly stopped (Nazi Germany still exists because of this). The Mutation Protocol was not only applied to humans but also to select animals such as livestock, predators, and migratory species, believed to be vital for the new world order. And there were millions of animals and thousands of humans used during the mutation protocol unfortunately because of its failures, widespread mutations, death, and societal collapse happened. Species such as frogs, bees, trout, bats, and songbirds (e.g., robins and sparrows), which were not targeted but relied on specific ecological balances suffered heavily. Mass die-offs of frogs and bees disrupted pollination and pest control systems leading to cascading agricultural failures. Aquatic species like trout and salmon sensitive to environmental changes vanished in regions where chemical runoff and mutations destabilize ecosystems. Mutated species that survived began causing genetic and breeding problems, further destabilizing the world. The mutated versions of Predators such as darwargs (mutated wolves) and felithrones (mutated big cats) became hyper-aggressive and deformed creatures pushing smaller predator species like foxes and lynxes into extinction. Additionally migratory species such as swallows and cranes disappeared as disrupted breeding and navigation systems led to total population collapse. With the planet already damaged by war, pollution, and environmental disasters, global powers abandoned efforts to heal it and focused on altering themselves. This worsened the situation leading to the Post-Protocol Collapse: a half-decade of mass refugee waves, large amounts of mutant extermination, and fractured global power. Many mutant species died, were killed, or escaped into the wild but these mutated animals started causing genetic and breeding problems further destabilizing the world. With the planet already damaged by war, pollution, and environmental disasters global powers abandoned efforts to heal it and focused on altering themselves. Some governments and organizations now operate ongoing trials conducting independent mutation experiments in their territories to perfect the technology though success is limited and fraught with risk. These experiments rely on Darwin Radiation, a theorized form of radiation meant to accelerate evolution by inducing mutations in genetic material. Intended to help organisms adapt this radiation instead triggered horrific unpredictable mutations. Societies fragmented into smaller often authoritarian states with many operating under military or oligarchic control particularly in resource-rich areas. While most nations maintain basic infrastructure and law, others are overwhelmed by instability and uprisings. Due to the Mutation Protocol's failure and the subsequent collapse humanity's population has dwindled to 1.5 billion (down from 3 billion).

Rules to Collaborate

When collaborating respect the established lore and maintain the project’s tone. Submit original work that contributes to the shared vision. Communicate openly and meet deadlines to ensure smooth progress. Provide constructive feedback and avoid overly graphic or offensive material that deviates from the project’s intent. Always credit contributors fairly, and maintain a balance between creativity and realism within the established setting.